It's official...we're pregnant!

Well, this spring has definitely held some emotional ups and downs for us, but we are officially announcing that we have a baby Johnson due in January 2013!  Here is a short version of the story so far.

On the morning of Neil's 33rd birthday, March 17th, I took a pregnancy test and it was positive!  I was a week late, so I was technically about 5 weeks pregnant.  We were a bit shocked and even after a week it didn't really seem real.  And then on March 25th I had a miscarriage.  Honestly the whole idea hadn't really even set in and I know that it is very common.  My doctor said approximately 1 out of 5 pregnancies ends in miscarriage.  I had stopped birth control last July, but Neil and I hadn't been really trying to conceive, so I figured at least I was able to get pregnant at all and that it would probably happen when the time was right.

Little did we know that the right time would be the next month!!  The doctor had me have one normal cycle after the miscarriage and then on May 17th I just had a feeling to take another pregnancy test since I wasn't sure when my period was supposed to start...and it was positive!

My doctor had me do a blood test that day and my hcg was 600 and progesterone 40.  It was official!  Four days later the blood test came back with hcg at 4000, which was a good sign!

Of course with my past experience and the miscarriage I was very skeptical that this time it would "stick".  I was feeling a little crampy and was leaving for a long weekend to Seattle, so I had the doctor test my blood again another 3 days later.  My hcg was over 12000, which looked good!  So I just took lots of deep breaths and figured whatever was going to happen would happen and tried not to worry.

On June 5th Neil came with me and we had the first ultrasound.  They saw the baby (the small blob in the top right of the black circle) and the heartbeat beating 136 beats per minute!  Apparently seeing the heartbeat at this stage greatly reduces the chance of miscarriage.  The baby was 7.6 mm long and they gave me a due date of January 24, 2013.  

It was around 6 or so weeks that I started feeling nauseous for most of the day and had terrible trouble with constipation and bloating.  I would feel normal waking up in the morning, but then after eating breakfast and around 10am I would start to feel nauseous, sometimes worse than others, and it would last until I fell asleep that night.  I still haven't thrown up even once, so I think I had the version of morning sickness that was just a constant "hang over" feeling.  Not fun!  I felt like it was never going to end!  Weeks 6 to 10 went by fairly slowly, but then it started speeding up.

Here I am at 8 weeks, looking fairly normal.

Also at about 8 weeks on June 18th I had my first appointment with my nurse midwife at the hospital.  They took my weight, blood pressure, a urine test and a blood test.  I also had to answer a number of questions about my health and family history...it was really just a bunch of paperwork.  They also gave me a packet of information with a chart of foods to be eating and how much, information on prenatal testing options, classes offered at the hospital and the community, etc.  I've really loved the food chart!  Even though I believe I already eat reasonably healthy and a variety of fruits, vegetables, grains, dairy, proteins, etc. it was fun to see which ones had the most vitamin A or calcium and to get ideas for new things to buy at the store.

At weeks 9-10 I traveled to Alaska for a week for work, which went fairly well, besides the continuous nausea and constipation.  And then time really started to fly.  Around 10 to 11 weeks I started noticing that there were periods of the day that I would occasionally feel normal again.  

Suddenly it was July 13th and time for Neil and I to go in for the first trimester screen at 12 weeks (which we had opted to do).  I remember lying on the bed looking at the black screen and suddenly she put the ultrasound probe on my stomach and there was a human baby there...that was actually in my stomach!  I think it was the first time that it felt real to Neil too.  It took about an hour for the baby to get in the right position for them to take the measurements they needed, so Neil and I just got to watch the baby (only 2-3 inches long) jump, kick, stretch, punch and turn over...it was so active!  We could see the baby's heart beating, brain, lungs, fluid in the stomach from swallowing, fluid in the bladder where it was getting ready to pee, and the blood flowing to and from the umbilical cord.  It was so crazy and Neil said, "I could sit here and watch this all day!"  Here's our favorite photo from the 12 week ultrasound...our baby is relaxing to the fullest, just like it's lying in a hammock with it's hands behind the head!

They also gave us the new due date of January 23rd, one day earlier.  Here's a photo of me at 12 weeks.  I was still feeling about the same, even though the only thing that seemed to help the nausea was snacking on something so I'd definitely been eating more than normal.  Midnight snacks of cottage cheese when I got up to pee and lots of wheat thins throughout the day were keeping me feeling alright.  I've learned I can't go anywhere without a selection of snacks in my bag!

Right after our 12 week ultrasound we hit the road for Minnesota and a week with the Johnson family.  It was fun to have everyone know that we were pregnant and not have to make up reasons for not drinking, etc.  Rita got me a belated Mother's Day gift of a prenatal massage, we spent time with friends and their kids, watched Chloe and Ella play softball, went maternity clothes shopping, got pedicures with the Johnson ladies, tried to stay out of the heat and humidity, and overall just had a really fun time hanging out and relaxing with great company.  Here is a shot of me trying on clothes (with a 9 month fake belly!) and of the whole fam together.  I sure HOPE that I look like this at 9 months, but I'm not holding my breath.

 

During the week in Minnesota I started noticing that my middle was feeling a bit thicker than before and when I had the maternity clothes on it actually made me look a little bit pregnant!  As soon as I got home I went through my closet and packed up the clothes that either a) don't fit me anymore now or b) definitely will not fit me as I get any bigger. 

On July 25th I had my second appointment with my nurse midwife.  I had gained 2 lbs since the 8 week visit, which I felt like was good for that 6 week period during the first trimester.  The goal is roughly 5-10 by 20 weeks.  Also, she said my blood work from the last visit was all completely normal.  She did a complete exam and we also listened to the baby's heartbeat with the doppler.  Since Neil wasn't there she let me record it on my phone.  In the 7 seconds of recording it beat 18 times, which calculates out to about 154 beats per minute approximately.

Now I am about 14 and half weeks along and we have started telling friends in Big Sky, as well as our employers.  This week has been terrible for headaches, the kind that are at the back of my head and above my eyes.  They are kind of like tension headaches, but I figure they must be hormonal.  I've also had some nasal congestion, especially at night, and sneezing with a bit of blood when I blow my nose.  Nausea is still there occasionally, so I end up feeling like I'm car sick with a slight headache and stomach ache.  Constipation is still somewhat of an issue, even though I've been eating prunes and flax seed on my oatmeal and taking metamucil every day since about 6 weeks.  I'm hoping the headaches don't last long and the nausea goes away completely here soon, but we'll see! 

Here is me at 14 weeks.  I originally thought I'd stick with black tanktops and leggings for all photos, but normal clothes are just so much more flattering.  These are some of the maternity clothes I got in Minnesota, which are definitely more comfortable even at this early stage.  I like to think that with the baby between the size of a lemon and an apple it's pushing everything else in my belly out even though it's not actually the baby that is showing. :)

Next dr visit is at about 17 weeks.  The one after that will be at about 21 weeks and will be when we find out the gender!  I can hardly wait.